Diercks To Drive For ML Motorsports
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
Opportunity, it's been said, only knocks once.
For Warsaw's ML Motorsports, an up-and-coming stock car team with aspirations of making it in NASCAR, opportunity knocked twice.
Robert Yates, a household name in NASCAR, called ML Motorsports in late 2004 to try and set something up with the Warsaw-based team, hoping one of his young Robert Yates Racing development drivers could fill the void made with the dismissal of Jason Jarrett.
ML Motorsports, however, hired Chad Blount.
After the release of Blount following the 2005 racing season, Yates again called ML Motorsports.
This time, the two racing organizations came to an agreement, and 25-year-old Justin Diercks will run a "handful of ARCA races and 12 to 18 Busch Series races," according to ML Motorsports Team President Ed Mullen.
"If he's good enough for Robert Yates, he's good enough for us," said Mullen. "We're real excited to have Justin Diercks drive for us. We're also very excited to be able to work with Robert Yates Racing and to have access to the technology of a major NASCAR team."
Diercks is under contract with Robert Yates Racing, which fields cars for Dale Jarrett and Elliott Sadler in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series.
While ML Motorsports already has a 40,000-square foot shop in Warsaw complete with a fabrication shop, paint and sanding room and an office facility, being able to work with a NASCAR team such as Robert Yates Racing is a big step forward.
"We took a long time to make sure this is what's best for the team and for our program," said Mullen. "We're still going to be ML Motorsports, we're going to be our own entity, but we're going to have access to technology that Cup teams have."
Diercks' first race with ML Motorsports will be the Feb. 11 ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
In preparation for the race, Diercks and ML Motorsports recently tested at Talladega Superspeedway. Also slated to be at the testing session, according to ML Motorsports crew chief Tom Sokoloski, were RYR drivers Jarrett and Sadler, two other RYR development drivers, and drivers from the Richard Childress Racing stable, which fields Nextel Cup cars for Kevin Harvick.
Not a bad group to share the track with.
"He's definitely not afraid to step on the gas pedal," Sokoloski said of Diercks, a native of Davenport, Iowa. "I was impressed with him the first time we saw him. He's a real good kid. I think we'll have a lot of fun with him."
Sokoloski and ML Motorsports team consultant Grady Humphries believe Diercks is blessed with plenty of driving talent.
Humphries, who lived in Hueytown, Ala., and worked on Bobby Allison's 1983 Winston Cup championship team, said Diercks reminds him of the late Davey Allison.
"Just the way he handles himself, he reminds me a lot of Davey," said Humphries. "All he wants to do is drive a racecar."
Diercks began racing go-karts in 1993, winning the season championship in his division.
In 1996, he raced mini cup cars in Indiana, Illinois and his home state of Iowa.
In 1997, Diercks began racing late model stock cars and won his first race at the age of 17.
Since then, Diercks has raced in ASA, the NASCAR RE/MAX Challenge Series, and most recently, the NASCAR Touring AutoZone Elite Midwest Series.
Diercks won the championship in the AutoZone Elite Midwest Series the past two seasons.
No stranger to winning races or championships, Diercks said during a recent visit to the ML Motorsports shop that he is excited about his opportunities this year.
"Right now, the big thing is to get me experience," Diercks said of moving to the bigger stock cars he will run in ARCA and in the Busch Series. "I think we can go out and win some ARCA races right off the bat, and then we're going to try some Busch races. Our goal in the Busch Series is to go out and qualify in the top 10 or 15 and run in the top 10 or 15. By the end of the year, I think we can run in the top five, or maybe win."
After opening their schedule with the ARCA race at Daytona, ML Motorsports may run the next four or five ARCA races to get Diercks more experience, after which they plan to run anywhere from 12 to 18 NASCAR Busch Series races.
"We're going to do a lot of testing, not only in the ARCA cars, but also in the Busch cars," said Diercks. "I'm really excited about the opportunity. These guys won a lot of races in ARCA last year and are good at what they do. I can't wait to get started."
In both the ARCA RE/MAX Series and the NASCAR Busch Series, Diercks' car will be No. 70. [[In-content Ad]]
Opportunity, it's been said, only knocks once.
For Warsaw's ML Motorsports, an up-and-coming stock car team with aspirations of making it in NASCAR, opportunity knocked twice.
Robert Yates, a household name in NASCAR, called ML Motorsports in late 2004 to try and set something up with the Warsaw-based team, hoping one of his young Robert Yates Racing development drivers could fill the void made with the dismissal of Jason Jarrett.
ML Motorsports, however, hired Chad Blount.
After the release of Blount following the 2005 racing season, Yates again called ML Motorsports.
This time, the two racing organizations came to an agreement, and 25-year-old Justin Diercks will run a "handful of ARCA races and 12 to 18 Busch Series races," according to ML Motorsports Team President Ed Mullen.
"If he's good enough for Robert Yates, he's good enough for us," said Mullen. "We're real excited to have Justin Diercks drive for us. We're also very excited to be able to work with Robert Yates Racing and to have access to the technology of a major NASCAR team."
Diercks is under contract with Robert Yates Racing, which fields cars for Dale Jarrett and Elliott Sadler in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series.
While ML Motorsports already has a 40,000-square foot shop in Warsaw complete with a fabrication shop, paint and sanding room and an office facility, being able to work with a NASCAR team such as Robert Yates Racing is a big step forward.
"We took a long time to make sure this is what's best for the team and for our program," said Mullen. "We're still going to be ML Motorsports, we're going to be our own entity, but we're going to have access to technology that Cup teams have."
Diercks' first race with ML Motorsports will be the Feb. 11 ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
In preparation for the race, Diercks and ML Motorsports recently tested at Talladega Superspeedway. Also slated to be at the testing session, according to ML Motorsports crew chief Tom Sokoloski, were RYR drivers Jarrett and Sadler, two other RYR development drivers, and drivers from the Richard Childress Racing stable, which fields Nextel Cup cars for Kevin Harvick.
Not a bad group to share the track with.
"He's definitely not afraid to step on the gas pedal," Sokoloski said of Diercks, a native of Davenport, Iowa. "I was impressed with him the first time we saw him. He's a real good kid. I think we'll have a lot of fun with him."
Sokoloski and ML Motorsports team consultant Grady Humphries believe Diercks is blessed with plenty of driving talent.
Humphries, who lived in Hueytown, Ala., and worked on Bobby Allison's 1983 Winston Cup championship team, said Diercks reminds him of the late Davey Allison.
"Just the way he handles himself, he reminds me a lot of Davey," said Humphries. "All he wants to do is drive a racecar."
Diercks began racing go-karts in 1993, winning the season championship in his division.
In 1996, he raced mini cup cars in Indiana, Illinois and his home state of Iowa.
In 1997, Diercks began racing late model stock cars and won his first race at the age of 17.
Since then, Diercks has raced in ASA, the NASCAR RE/MAX Challenge Series, and most recently, the NASCAR Touring AutoZone Elite Midwest Series.
Diercks won the championship in the AutoZone Elite Midwest Series the past two seasons.
No stranger to winning races or championships, Diercks said during a recent visit to the ML Motorsports shop that he is excited about his opportunities this year.
"Right now, the big thing is to get me experience," Diercks said of moving to the bigger stock cars he will run in ARCA and in the Busch Series. "I think we can go out and win some ARCA races right off the bat, and then we're going to try some Busch races. Our goal in the Busch Series is to go out and qualify in the top 10 or 15 and run in the top 10 or 15. By the end of the year, I think we can run in the top five, or maybe win."
After opening their schedule with the ARCA race at Daytona, ML Motorsports may run the next four or five ARCA races to get Diercks more experience, after which they plan to run anywhere from 12 to 18 NASCAR Busch Series races.
"We're going to do a lot of testing, not only in the ARCA cars, but also in the Busch cars," said Diercks. "I'm really excited about the opportunity. These guys won a lot of races in ARCA last year and are good at what they do. I can't wait to get started."
In both the ARCA RE/MAX Series and the NASCAR Busch Series, Diercks' car will be No. 70. [[In-content Ad]]